Eye-Bank Hosts Open House

Please join the Illinois Eye-Bank (IEB) in Chicago for an Open House on Saturday, October 17 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Attendees will have the chance to meet IEB staff, tour the lab and view the Illinois Donor Family Quilt.

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Volunteers needed for Low Vision Conference

The Illinois Eye-Bank (IEB) is looking for volunteers willing to staff a table at Discovery Conference 2009: The Low Vision Conference, put on by Spectrios Institute for Low Vision.

Volunteers will help register donors and pass out information related to the Illinois Eye-Bank and the Illinois Organ/Tissue Donor Registry.

The conference will be held at the Holiday Inn Mart Plaza in Chicago from August 20-22. If you would like to volunteer, contact Mary Schlereth at (312) 706-6771 or mschlereth@illinoiseyebank.org. For more information on the conference, visit www.spectrios.com.

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Attend the Illinois Vision Coalition Symposium

The second annual Illinois Vision Coalition Symposium will be held on October 7 at the Chicago Cultural Center. Registration for this free event will be available on the Illinois Vision Coalition Web site, www.preventblindness.org/Illinois/ivc.html, later this summer.

The Illinois Vision Coalition promotes healthy eyes and good vision for all Illinois residents. The coalition seeks to decrease the prevalence of preventable eye diseases and eye injuries by presenting educational opportunities and offering a portal for eye health and vision services throughout the state.

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Donate Life Illinois creates social networking site for donor families and recipients

Recipients and donor families are invited to join Donate Life Illinois’ social networking Web site, located at http://donatelifeillinois.ning.com/. The site, created and maintained by Donate Life Illinois (DLI), enables users to connect with other recipients and donor family members, and to view current DLI events.

A brief description of DLI and its partners can be found at http://donatelifeillinois.org/.

Donate Life Illinois hosts donor registration drives around the state to help re-register Illinoisans.  Most recently, DLI staff members registered 466 donors at the Kenny Chesney concert at Soldier Field. 

DLI also reaches out to Illinois high school driver’s education and health classes to educate students on the facts about donation and transplantation. If anyone is interested in becoming a Donate Life Illinois volunteer and sharing their personal experience or helping register donors, they can contact Mary Schlereth at (312) 706-6771 or mschlereth@illinoiseyebank.org.

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I Joined! update

Illinois Eye-Bank staff members have been visiting Lions Clubs and other community groups around the state, discussing the Illinois Organ/Tissue Donor Registry and the importance of signing up as a donor.

These visits have been part of the Illinois Eye-Bank’s I Joined! program, a grassroots campaign to get the word out about eye, organ and tissue donation. The presentation is designed to answer questions about donation and explain its importance. Presenters bring all necessary materials to enable group members to join the Donor Registry on the spot.

Eye-Bank staff members have already visited 31 Lions Clubs, as well as numerous other community groups.

If you would like to set up a free I Joined! presentation, contact Illinois Eye-Bank Community Engagement Coordinator Mary Schlereth at (312) 706-6771 or mschlereth@illinoiseyebank.org.

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IEB Walk for Sight team raises $900

Congratulations to the Illinois Eye-Bank’s Walk for Sight team, which raised $900 for the Illinois Eye-Bank and the Illinois Lions Foundation.